Plant Disease and Insect Clinic

How to Submit a Sample

This page gives an overview of sample submission forms, fees, and shipping. It also gives instructions for collecting and packaging your sample.

Before you submit a sample, consider contacting your County Agent or a Master Gardener. He or she can diagnose many common plant disease and insect problems.

If necessary, the Agent or Gardener can help you properly collect and submit a sample to the PDIC. After the diagnosis, they can recommend control methods that are suitable to your location and situation.

Quick Links

Click a link below to quickly navigate to information available on this page for submitting a sample:

All samples must include a sample form filled out with the required information. The sample form provides us with information that is vital for correctly identifying your plant problem.

If you are a new user and this is your first time submitting a sample, click the New Users button at the top of the page to get detailed instructions about how to create a user account and fill out an electronic sample form.

All samples can be entered into the database electronically. This saves clinician time and results in a faster diagnosis. Be sure to fill out the form completely and include all required sample information. Print the 'Sample Results' page to send with your sample.

First time database user instructions - click on the "New Users" button at the top of the page for detailed instructions

NC Cooperative Extension Service and NCSU Campus users can log in using a Unity ID.

Guest users should create an account by clicking "Guest Login" from the drop down menu on the Unity login page. Follow the instructions.

Be sure to fill in all the required information. We can't give you a good diagnosis or ID if you don't give us good information.

Check your image for detail and focus after uploading

Digital images must be in JPG format.

Required Information

(Samples with incomplete information will not be processed.)

Fill out the form giving all the information requested.

In the electronic submission form, required information is indicated by a green dot.

Be sure to CHECK OFF the SYMPTOMS, DISTRIBUTION and PARTS AFFECTED and complete the LOCATION section.

Complete ALL sections of the front of the form if you are submitting an insect for identification.

Sample Fees (Excludes Turf)

$20: In-state samples submitted by Coopertive Extension Service (including Master Gardeners), NCDA&CS Regional Agronomists, and other State of North Carolina and non-profit agencies, with on-line submission of sample information

$30: In-state samples submitted directly to the PDIC by the public and all samples submitted without information filled out on-line

$75: Out-of-state samples

See our Fee Schedule for detailed information and for other sample types

Make check payable to NCSU and include with the sample. Please put "PDIC fee" on the memo line.

NOTE: WEED Identification Samples and samples where sudden oak death (SOD or Ramorum blight) are suspected should not be sent to the clinic. For your convenience, links are provided below for more information, forms, and addresses for those kinds of samples. There is no charge for SOD and Weed ID samples.

Greenhouse Plants

Leave plants in pots whenever possible. Plant foliage should be dry and planting medium should be slightly moist but not soggy.

Enclose the pot in a plastic bag and secure the bag at the main stem of the plant.

Wrap foliage in newspaper and pull bag up around paper and tie it off.

It is IMPORTANT to keep soil off the foliage.

Bedding plants can be left in their containers but pack newspaper or other padding around them before wrapping in newspaper.

IMPORTANT: OUT OF STATE SAMPLES MUST BE DOUBLE BAGGED AND SEALED. SAMPLES THAT ARE NOT PROPERLY PACKAGED WILL BE DESTROYED UPON RECEIPT.

Fleshy vegetables, fruits

Do not place produce in plastic bags!!!

Collect several specimens.

Wrap each in several layers of newspaper.

Package in a box to prevent crushing.

Note: due to the unexpected passing of mycologist Dr. Larry Grand, the clinic is not accepting mushroom samples at this time.

Special Cases

Indoor (household) mold samples

The preferred method for submitting household mold
samples is on cotton swabs.

For each affected area, take a new cotton
swab and rub gently across the moldy/stained surface.

Label a sealable plastic bag with the location (e.g. “windowsill in back
bedroom”, “floor joist in crawlspace”) and place the swab inside. Place only one swab in each bag.

It’s
helpful to get a piece of the material (wood, sheetrock, fabric) on which the mold was growing, when this
is practical. For wood, a chisel can be used to remove a piece about 1/8" to 1/4" thick and a few inches long.

Online data entry for mold ID samples is basically the
same as for other kinds of samples. Use the following options:
Host site type=“Household”; Host=“Household; Domestic Dwellings; Habitat”; Problem
type=“Other”.

Explain the situation completely in the Comments section, including
a list of the individual sites for which swabs are being submitted.

Samples from up to five separate areas within the building may be submitted with each sample
number (form).

Greenhouse air sampling for ethylene

Please contact us at 919-515-3619 or plantclinic@ces.ncsu.edu if you
would like a set of vials and instructions for air sampling for ethylene
concentrations.

You can also download the ethylene sampling form and instructions, which include the
current fee structure.